14. Meg
CHAPTER 14
MEG
M eg sat in her truck, parked on the side of the road, staring out the window at nothing in particular. Her first instinct had been to just keep driving, following the road in front of her and ending up who knows where. As long as she wasn’t on the ranch anymore. It would have felt good to run away. It would have been cathartic to just avoid all of this for as long as possible. But unfortunately the rational, practical side of her brain chimed in as usual.
She was exhausted, she was emotionally spent, and if she wanted to stay somewhere other than Fordswell, she would be driving well into the early morning. So, yeah, this was one of the worst scenarios she could have ended up in, but Meg had to admit that driving into a ditch at midnight because she didn’t want to be here was worse. She would be responsible, because that was what it always came down to, wasn’t it? Meg being the responsible one. Meg doing the right thing. Meg doing it all on her own. At least for tonight she would stay in a hotel where she could eat, sleep and shower.
And wasn’t it just her luck that every room in town was booked out. Meg felt herself growing more and more brittle with every passing minute.
I could call Mom and Dad.
The thought hit her like a ton of bricks. They knew she was back in Wyoming, back in Fordswell. She couldn’t just be here for this long and not tell them. But she honestly hadn’t had the time to go and see them, not with all the craziness of trying to renovate those stupid buildings. So, yeah, she could call them. Was she really that desperate?
Yes. And desperate times called for desperate measures.
She pulled her phone out of her bag and dialed her dad’s phone number before she could change her mind. Three rings sounded, and Meg was already on the verge of hanging up when he answered.
“Meg?” he asked, less of a greeting and more of a question. “What’s wrong?”
That was a blow, but she deserved it. The fact that if she was calling rather than texting, then he automatically assumed that it meant something was wrong… He was right though, so she couldn’t even deny it. Well, there was no point in trying to cover it all up with niceties then, was there?
“Can I stay at your house? For a few days?”
“Oh, I thought you were reconnecting with Nash?” he said, still sounding surprised.
“Yeah, well…”
Suddenly there was a static rattling sound and her mother’s voice could be heard loud and clear.
“Of course you can stay. What a ridiculous question,” Rebecca said in her clipped voice. “But please, for the love of God, don’t bring any animals with you. I’ve only just had the carpets cleaned.”
The fact that her mom’s biggest concern was potential animal hair in the carpets and not her grown daughter crashing into their home out of the blue actually made Meg feel just a tiny bit better.
“No animals,” she said, trying to keep the waver out of her voice. “I’ll be there soon.”
“All right, Meggy,” her dad said. “Drive safe.”
Meg hung up, relieved that she had somewhere to go. She tried to focus on that rather than the guilt of how surprised she was at their willingness to have her back. She shook her head, trying to shake it clear, and started driving.
When Meg’s mom answered the door, she looked over her daughter with a raised eyebrow and pursed lips. It was a familiar expression.
“ Those are not allowed inside,” said Rebecca, pointing a stern finger at Meg’s mud-caked boots. “As for the rest of your clothes, I’m assuming they’ll all need to be washed.”
“Probably,” Meg said with a sigh that wasn’t even a bit frustrated. She was just so tired . “I’ll throw them in the laundry.”
“Nonsense,” tutted Rebecca as Meg toed off her boots and followed her inside. “You look like you’ve been dragged backwards through a hedge. Give me your bag. Oh, and say hello to your father.”
Without further ado, her mom took the strap of her duffle bag and disappeared down the hall to the laundry room as if this were all a perfectly normal afternoon for everyone involved. But before she could dwell on her mother’s hospitable reaction any further, Vic appeared in the entryway, with his silver hair and neatly ironed shirt.
Less squeamish about dirty clothes than his wife, Vic wrapped Meg up in a hug, his long arms giving her a squeeze. It was nearly enough to tip Meg over the edge into blubbering hysterics. She somehow managed to keep her tears in check and hugged him back.
“Hi, Dad.”
“I’m making lasagna,” he said, forgoing any sort of actual greeting. “And I was thinking of mashed potatoes to go along with the salad. So I hope you haven’t eaten too recently.”
Meg’s stomach growled on cue. “No,” she said. “I could eat a horse.”
“That seems rather against the ethics of your profession,” he said, and Meg snorted a laugh.
“I’m assuming you remember where your old room is?” he asked.
“Yeah, I think I can find it.”
And it really was that easy. Meg wandered down the hall to her old bedroom, which was now a neutral-looking guest room, while her dad continued on with whatever he had been doing and her mom fussed over Meg’s grimy possessions.
She sat on the edge of the neatly made bed and let her shoulders sink. She even closed her eyes for a bit, just for a few seconds where everything was still and dark and not absolutely insane.
What did she do now?
The thought of going back to a job on the industrial lot crossed her mind and she stamped it out just as quick. No way. She was never going back there, not for double the salary and a lifetime of free food. Well, she could always just get another transfer, which was what she had planned to do anyway when the ranch evaluation was done. That idea was dashed just as quickly as the first. In fact, any thought of going back to work for the mega corporation, or any corporation really, made her feel slightly sick. She hadn’t realized how much she’d hated it, how miserable every day had been until she’d been surrounded by fields and fresh air.
She’d been so relaxed on the ranch, in a way that she hadn’t been in years. Maybe ever. Everything had been so simple, so peaceful, and Meg was only just now realizing that she had envisioned her life continuing there. She had thought her life would continue with Nash…
She flopped back on the bed. Why couldn’t things just go well? Her job had been great… well, not great but fine, and then Mitch had taken over and ruined it for everyone. The Callahan Ranch really had been going great, and then she had to find out about Nash’s secret agenda. Maybe if he had told her from the moment she’d set foot there what had actually happened, then everything would have still been fine. But then again, she might never have warmed up to him at all. It was all just a line of dominoes, each action dependent on such a specific order. Trying to sift through it all was making her head spin.
Why did life have to be confusing? The planet was old enough now; couldn’t someone have written a handy rule book for everyone to follow? At least jot down some tips and tricks? Here’s how to not be an idiot. Five easy steps.
Meg kept her face shoved into a pillow, trying to block out the world and all of the mess she kept finding herself in. She heard her mom walking up and down the hall as she tutted over laundry. She was sure that her dad was at the kitchen table reading while the lasagna baked.
Meg didn’t know what she had expected, calling out of the blue and asking to stay with her parents. She hadn’t really expected them to say no, but she hadn’t been prepared for this sort of open-armed hospitality either. It was like the last decade hadn’t happened, like she had just come home from school and retreated to her room. Mom was doing laundry. Dad was reading. Dinner would be ready soon. It was the most potent déjà vu Meg had ever felt, and she looked down at herself more than once, checking that she wasn’t suddenly sixteen again. Honestly this day had gone so badly wrong that time travel wasn’t out of the question. She had no room left to be surprised anymore.
As hard as she tried to avoid it, her thoughts circled back to Nash. Because outside of all this drama, she was still contracted to do that evaluation on his ranch. Before she would be able to move on in any direction, she needed to wrap that up. Nash had said in the treehouse that he no longer wanted to sell. That he wanted to try this one last time, and he wanted a way out. Meg could be cruel for once and screw him over. She deserved that much, at least, after everyone else had felt entitled to interfere in her life. Right?
But of course she had to do the right thing. Because that was how she was programmed. Being a terrible person would make everything so much easier…
She sat up, grabbed her phone and started typing her official findings. She’d already called her parents and asked for help. After that, typing out an email was easy.
It was professional and to the point. The ranch wasn’t suitable for acquisition, and Meg could provide all the necessary paperwork and reasons if needed. But in her professional opinion, the sale should be abandoned. Also, she was resigning. She added the necessary “thank you for the experience” and similar words before hitting send.
A thousand-pound weight was lifted off Meg’s shoulders, and she finally felt tears roll down her face. Feeling that release was way too overwhelming to keep inside for a second longer.